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THQ flaunts Age of Empires DS sequel

Big beasties for Mythologies.

THQ has whipped the wrappers off an autumn-bound Age of Empires sequel for DS.

Dubbed Mythologies, it's based less on factual history and more on giant beasties and tales of old.

You'll be able to play as one of three civilisations, spanning four environments: Greece, Egypt, the frozen north and one other.

Developer Griptonite will be taking the lead this time, and is a sister company to original team Backbone so will do plenty of sharing and maybe wife-swapping.

Mythologies is being built from scratch and boasts much more detailed graphics that are said to avoid the cluttered and problems with often-indistinguishable units of the first.

To our eyes the first shots appear crisper and more vibrant, if similar in style, plus we're promised more impressive Animations and AI this time around.

On top of this, Griptonite is going to let you take on your friends either locally or using Wi-Fi, which - we can tell you from this morning's experience - is better than someone scraping a shovel along concrete right outside your window.

Age of Empires: Age of Kings appeared on DS back in 2006. It served more as a promising sign of things to come, as it managed to admirably force the renowned series onto the small screen with only minor niggles.

Pop over to our Age of Empires: Age of Kings review to find out more.